“Matthew Bourne’s Sleeping Beauty is a most cinematic night at the ballet; a tale of high adventure, dark and funny in equal measure, and a delight for the whole family.”
📍 Festival Theatre, Edinburgh
📅 Tue 11 to Sat 15 Apr 2023
🕖 Evenings: 7.30pm | Matinees: 2.30pm
🕖 Running time: 2 hours 10 mins, including one interval
🎬 Directed, choreographed, and new scenario: Matthew Bourne
⚒️ Set and Costume Designer: Lex Brotherston
🎼 Composer: Pyotr Illyich Tchaikovsky
🔊 Sound Designer: Paul Groothuis
💡 Lighting Designer: Paul Constable
🧸 Puppets: Paradigm Design
🎂 5+
🎭 Wheelchair Accessible Venue, Wheelchair Accessible Toilets, Audio Induction Loop
10 years since that celebrated Sadler’s Wells premiere, Matthew Bourne and New Adventures take to the stage of the Edinburgh Festival Theatre, to celebrate its 151st performance. The question is whether such longevity is a product of continuing excellence, or a profile earned years ago by another cast playing to forgotten audiences.
The good news is that the show remains an absolute blast. A curious compliment to pay a ballet, but apt. In every respect this is a ballet made for the whole family – from the princess obsessed 6 year old, to the 89 year old who pines for days when the words ‘abstract’ and ‘dance’ were less familiar to one another.
Yes, the production values are strictly stellar including Lez Brotherston’s sumptuous sets and stylish costumes and Paul Constable’s momentous yet clear sound design. However, it’s Matthew Bourne’s re-envisioning of the tale itself which cements its position a cut above the rest. In place of Ivan Vsevolozhsky‘s spindle-point ode to the Brothers Grimm and unconsenting kisses, Bourne tells a love story spanning a century amidst a fairy war, laced with vampires.
In this rendition Princess Aurora (Katrina Lyndon) is born in 1890, thus coming of age in 1911, and the proprieties of the Victoria era. One familiar curse later opens the final two acts in 2011, and a different world. Beloved of the Gamekeeper Leo (Rory MacLeod), this Aurora is a wild child, popular with noble suitors, but with eyes only for the tender of the Royal roses. However neither her birth, nor majority occur without a heavy lacing of the fantastical.
As a babe – brought to fantastic & endearing puppetry life – she is visited, blessed and entertained by Count Lilac, King of the Fairies (Dominic North) and his court. Snubbed Carabosse, the Dark Fairy (Jackson Fisch) appears next, seeking to make her 21st birthday a fatal one. That curse is altered, but not lifted, by the Count’s intercession. This is a wonderful sequence, and a magical opening to the ballet as the good fairies put on a show mixing beauty with the Pierrot’s prat-falls. Attended by two gargoyle-like attendants Carabosse sets a different tone, blending villainous voguing with a muscular modern choreography.
At this point it maye clear that this Sleeping Beauty is not a descendant of the purest balletic tradition. In truth it exhibits a blend of classic and modern traditions closer to Rambert in sensibilities than the RB. However, there’s excellence in each movement, and an energy to the foot and body work often lacking in other aspic-set renditions.
Of the principal cast only good things may be said. Lyndon offers an athletic, potent Princess, light on her feet, but unafraid of some artistic tumbling with her beloved. MacLeod is a winning protagonist, swift and sure but with a winning trace of awkwardness. North strikes the most swashbuckling figure, leaping high, whilst falling on his face with the greatest aplomb before the infant Aurora. Fisch in his dual roles certainly earns his spirs, his angular movements subtly altered to infer inheritance betwixt parent and child.
It’s worth pointing out, as is common with touring ballet, the score is recorded. In this case a bespoke recording by the Sleeping Beauty Orchestra under Brett Morris back in 2012. It’s lively, pacey, and most importantly brightly, and accurately recorded. If there’s no replacing the thrill of a live orchestra, this is an adequate substitute augmented as it is, with titanic sound effects for good measure.
The second act plays out amidst a sun-blessed garden party in the palace grounds. All jolly tennis racquets and rival suitors in sports jackets, life seems good for the Princess. She even has time to ‘Lady Chatterley’ her liaisons with Leo. Of course being 21 it’s time for the curse to come good, and poor old Carabosse having died in disgrace, it falls to her son Caradoc (Jackson Fisch) to see it through. Dark haired and pale, and rocking bloodsucker chic, he comes bearing a dark rose with poisonous thorns.
The lightest toned phase of the ballet, there’s plenty of humour laced through an all waltzing, all Aurora-centric, and excellent performance from the corps.
Of course, Count Lilac is on hand to ensure it’s sleepy time and not dying-time for the Princess, and for her entire court. Leo, outside the palace grounds when the enchantment takes root must find another way to survive the 100 years till he can rescue his beloved with a kiss.
The final two acts are when Bourne’s alterations truly pay off however, pitching Leo and Count Lilac into conflict with Caradoc and his ghoulish attendees. In place of a conflict lacking final section as ‘normal’, here is a battle reaching its zenith. There follows an ending entirely in-keeping with the fantastic, and comedic sensibilities of the production. Not before the audience attends a seriously strange disco, and a series of fabulous set pieces worthy of the glory days of MTV. Madonna would be proud.
One or two of the hip gyrations sit a little awkwardly amidst the mix, and maybe there’s a few narrative mixed messages when it comes to Caradoc’s intentions towards Aurora. These are minor blips.
Brotherston achieves quite the coup tying Victoriana beginnings to a modern-day ending with a gothic sensibility which sits easily in both eras. Unifying all is the fairies’ Adam Ant worthy costuming and eye-makeup. It’s unclear however, why Count Lilac as fairy king wears little to distinguish themselves from their similarly garbed counterparts.
There are, of course, many more fundamental details omitted here to prevent you, dear reader, from spoilers. Where most new performances of old ballets are long past the point where spoilers are possible, such is not the case here. Suffice to say Bourne has many tricks up his sleeve. He delivers them with surrepticious grace throughout his tale.
All in all Matthew Bourne’s Sleeping Beautiy is a most cinematic night at the ballet; a tale of high adventure, dark and funny in equal measure, and a delight for the whole family.
Note: This Review is of the performance 12th April 2023
Matthew Bourne’s Sleeping Beauty plays the Festival Theatre, Edinburgh from Tue 11 to Sat 15 Apr 2023. It is a New Adventures production.
By
By
